The German secured the victory at Arthur Ashe Stadium before a crowd of 3.2 million television viewers, according to ESPN, though his post-match remarks and on-court habits quickly drew widespread public debate.
## Post-Match Speech and Family Interactions
Immediately following championship point, Zverev embraced Bryan Shelton, the father and coach of Ben Shelton, according to reports from Express.co.uk. Zverev later offered high praise for his opponent during the trophy presentation, stating, as reported by Express.co.uk, “Ben, you’re an incredible player and person. It’s your first Grand Slam final, but I already told you you’re gonna be back here many more times. If I had to bet my money on it, I’d bet that you would lift this trophy one day.”
Shelton reciprocated the sportsmanship during his runner-up speech, telling Zverev, according to Express.co.uk, “Sascha, congrats on these two weeks, man. Your second Grand Slam title. Two in one year.”
However, Zverev’s speech drew swift backlash on social media when he addressed soccer star Trinity Rodman, who is Ben Shelton’s partner and plays for the Washington Spirit, according to Daily Mail. Rodman had traveled to New York following her NWSL match earlier in the day to watch the final. Addressing Rodman from the court microphone, Zverev joked, according to Daily Mail: “Hey Trinity, I thought you have a game today, no? Well done to you as well. You’re the lucky charm, so. Not today, but usually.” While Rodman laughed along on the stadium big screen, viewers on social media heavily criticized the remarks, with some users labeling the comment “the ultimate disrespect” and “pure humiliation,” as noted by Daily Mail.
## The Serve Routine Debate
Beyond the post-match ceremony, the final intensified ongoing discussions regarding Zverev’s prolonged service routine. Throughout the fortnight, Zverev routinely bounced the ball over 12,000 times across his first five matches, according to Daily Mail reports. The tactic has previously drawn complaints from competitors, including Karen Khachanov, who stated after his semifinal loss to Zverev that the ball-bouncing routine “annoys not only me, of course, [but] a lot of players,” as reported by Daily Mail. Tennis figures such as Andy Roddick and John McEnroe have also raised concerns over the delays. Following Sunday’s loss, Shelton called on tennis authorities to implement stricter regulations on second serves, noting that players currently face no maximum limit on ball bounces for a second delivery as long as it is hit without delay. “I definitely think for a first serve, you should be able to do whatever you want – you can use the full 25 seconds every time,” Shelton said, according to Daily Mail. “I think that there should be some sort of rule… limiting time on second serve. You shouldn’t have unlimited time. For our sport, for the fans, I think it’s tough to be sitting there that long for the next play, the next action to happen.”
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